Janice Litman-Goralnik
Janice (full name Janice Litman Goralnik (née Hosenstein)) is a recurring character on Friends. She was Chandler Bing's long-time on-again, off-again girlfriend. She is known for her irritating, nasal voice and her trademark cry of "OH MY GOD!". Janice is also considered one of the most popular and humorous recurring characters in the entire series. History Though she is Chandler's girlfriend since the start of the show, Janice isn't seen until the fifth episode, when Chandler asks Phoebe to help him break up with her. Later that season, Chandler invites her to a New Year's party in a desperate attempt to have someone to kiss, but can't stand being around her and breaks up with her again before midnight, leaving him so cranky that Joey ends up kissing him. Later in the show, Chandler and Janice hook up again after Joey unknowingly sets Chandler up with her on a double-date. He sleeps wtih her and breaks up again the next day, which happens to be Valentine's Day. In the beginning of Season 2, a lonely Chandler who is afraid of becoming like Mr Heckles decides to call Janice, but she reveals herself at the coffee-house married and pregnant. Only in the last episode of Season 2 does Chandler hook up with her again, after flirting with her on the Internet (although he does not know her identity during the conversations, he does discover that she's married). This starts his longest relationship with Janice during the course of the show, which ends in The One With The Giant Poking Device, when Chandler finds out she's cheating on him and tells her to try and re-construct her family. In the middle of Season 4, Janice and Chandler meet at a nails studio. Although she is crazy about Chandler, it's clear that he does not reciprocate her feelings. At this point, Janice declares that she does not intend to leave him anymore, and such is his disappointment that he tells her he's flying to Yemen for work. His fake plans, however, get realized pretty quickly, as Janice doesn't leave the airport until she sees him take off on the plane (Chandler ends up asking an old native woman if he can stay with her in Yemen). Season 5 is when Janice shows up again - this time as Ross' hook-up in The One With Chandler's Work Laugh. Ross, who is currently divorced twice, evicted and unemployed, has just learned that his second ex-wife Emily is getting married again, and in despair he goes out and stays out all night, running into Janice and hooking up with her. However, she finds this version of Ross so whiny that she ends it up with him, making him realize the degree of mediocrity he has sunken into and restoring his self-esteem. In the closing scene of the episode, Ross explains to Chandler about his thing with Janice, which Chandler finds hilarious until Ross explains how certain rules are understood about friends' ex-girlfriends or girls friends are related to (Chandler is currently dating Monica in secret, and after hearing this, decides to let Ross live with him and Joey rent-free and gives him $27 whilst constantly reminding him how he forgave his thing with Janice). Season 6 is the only season in which Janice does not appear on-screen. She is a voice-over on Chandler's mixed tape in The One With Unagi, which mixed tape he gives to Monica claiming he recorded romantic songs for her. On hearing Janice's nasal squeaks, Monica goes into her room, leaving Chandler on the couch. In Season 7, Janice is dining at Alessandro's when she meets Monica, who is engaged to Chandler. Such is her confidence with Chandler and Monica that she invites herself to their wedding and tries to stay at their apartment so that they appreciate her as family. Monica can only send her away by telling her that Chandler has strong feelings for her, which would make her presence a problem. Janice leaves, wishing Monica "a lifetime of happiness", and telling Chandler to call her "when this wedding goes in the pooper". Season 8 is almost entirely in the absence of Janice, except for the finale (parts 1 and 2). She's pregnant again, this time from her second husband Sid (who, being deaf, is able to stick with her) and she has a baby boy, Aaron, who is hinted to have an extremely ugly nose and predicted by his mother to marry Rachel and Ross' daughter Emma. She also tries to explain to Rachel that unless she and Ross start a relationship again, Ross is likely to drift away from the family she has to raise. In Season 9, Janice shows up at a fertility clinic in The One With The Fertility Test. She finds Chandler there, and she jokes with him about him being given the "kiddie-size" cup for his sample. She tries to comfort him by telling him that he and Monica are meant to have children. Ironically, by the end of the episode, Chandler and Monica learn that they are both incapable of natural conception, constricting them to resort to other methods to have children. In the final season, Janice plans to move in Chandler and Monica's neighboring house in Westchester. To avoid this, Chandler suggests that they pick up where they left off, bluffing how he never stopped loving her. Fearful that they might ruin their marriages, Janice removes her bid on the house, kissing Chandler one last time. Trivia *Maggie Wheeler's portrayal of Janice is a parody of Fran Drescher, who stars in The Nanny; *Season 6 is the only season in which Janice does not appear on-screen. She is, however, heard as a voice-over. *If the number of times Chandler slept with his girlfriends during the course of the show is proportional to their appearances, then Janice is the girl who he slept with most after Monica; *Except for The One With The East German Laundry Detergent, The One With Chandler's Work Laugh, and The One With Unagi, Janice's first words on-screen are always: "OH! MY! GOD!". *Maggie Wheeler originally auditioned for the part of Monica but was turned down and given the role of Janice instead Personality Janice is portrayed as extremely annoying, with an extravagant fashion sense, a loud, nasal exaggerated New-York accent, and a loud laugh which is so annoying that Chandler admits makes his balls bounce up in his body. Her trademark expression is "OH! MY! GOD!" with noticeable pauses in between each word and hands flapping in sync. Some speculate that she is a parody of Fran Drescher, known for her role in The Nanny. Even though her first and second apearance had made her seem like an nice lady in love with Chandler, the third got to the point where she became annoying to the whole gang, Including Chandler. Appearances Janice has appeared in every season of Friends, except Season 6, where only her voice is heard on a mix tape that she had previously made for Chandler while they were dating, as well as appearing in a clip show. Janice's total appearances are 3 in the first season, 2 in the second season, 6 in the third season (this was when Chandler was willingly in a relationship with her), and 1 appearance every season thereafter (although in the season six episode only her voice can be heard). Category:Characters Category:Recurring Characters Category:Mothers